Terri Thompson
Terri Thompson, a friend from Wake Forest University passed away last week of complications related to cancer. Though Terri was not in my study group, we all got to know each other well during our condensed 17 month program. Terri was from Jamaica originally and on the team at Haynes clothing that came up with the tagless tee shirt. My thoughts and prayers are with Terri and her family. She was too young. In her forties, I believe.
A fellow classmate who was close to Terri kept us informed about her battle through emails and mentioned her unbreakable spirit and sense of humor in the face of her ultimate challenge. He wrote at some point that Terri had recently been laid off from a management position, had a 12 year old son and no health insurance. In his words: “I can’t imagine what she must be going through.”
When I heard the news of her passing last Friday, I was at our family place up in Canada. I made a special effort to travel up there this year to visit my sister and best friend, both of whom have also had cancer issues this year. I have had some phone calls and emails with my sister and my friend (probably not as much as I should) and some great times together during our visit. At no time during any of these interactions did the word insurance come up in the conversation. Or cost. Or out of pocket. Both were pleased with the level of care that they were receiving.
During my visit, I read an opinion piece in the Globe & Mail about Obama’s efforts to reform healthcare in the United States which brought up a good point. In Canada, they have been toying around for years with the idea of privatizing at least some aspects of healthcare. In the United States, public health care already exists with Medicaid and Medicare. Both systems are moving slowly towards each other – converging. (”Canadians could do with less waiting; Americans could do with less cost”)
Neither system is perfect; each has its well publicized flaws. There was some YouTube video making the rounds about a Canadian woman who had to seek emergency care in Arizona. Reasonable private healthcare in the United States for a family of 5 costs around $20,000 a year, if you include deductibles. It’s expensive. And it’s increasing 20% a year! People must get sick in the United States just worrying about how they are going be able to afford healthcare.
Public? Private? Who knows?
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